Family is Complicated
by castor442
Summary: Frank Castle was not a very forgiving person. But he was also very protective of his family, no matter how much they deserved a bullet between the eyes. A retelling of The Punisher season 2, where instead of Frank killing Billy, he brings him home instead. Warning: Contains threat of a spanking


_**Disclaimer: I don't own the punisher or any of its characters. They are the property of Stan Lee and Marvel.**_

 _ **Warning: This story contains discussion and threat of a spanking.**_

* * *

 _Billy Russo was just too cute to be killed. And after all the horrible mean things he had done throughout the series, he still called Curtis to tell him he was hurt when he was bleeding out. And try to apologize to Frank when he came by later. That scene just pulled at my heartstrings. So, this is a redemption sort of story for Billy Russo. Also, I just couldn't get Prince Caspian out of my head._

* * *

Frank threw back a shot of whiskey and slammed the glass on the table. He winced slightly as Amy shifted where she slept on the couch, her curls framing her face. She had refused to sleep in any of the bedrooms upstairs, despite the mansion now belonging to them as David Schultz didn't want anything to do with it. He didn't blame her. Sometimes, he forgot that she was still just a child, about the same age as his daughter would have been if she was still alive. He breathed an internal sigh of relief as she settled back into sleep, the normalcy of the act putting a small smile on his face.

 _He thought we were still friends, like I was betraying him somehow._

He shook his head to clear it, the conversation with Curtis fresh in his mind even though its been weeks since the shootout with Billy at the bank. But he couldn't get Billy's look out of his head. That look of utter betrayal, of confusion, was seared into his memory. Now, Billy had done horrible things and made very questionable choices in life but Frank had messed him up pretty good for that. Hell, his face reminded him every day if he as much as pretended to forget. But there was a time when Frank had been inseparable with the kid, cos when it came down to it, that's what Billy was. A kid. And no one knew that better than Frank. He **had** helped him fake the papers to get into the marines, he should know. It had seemed like a good idea at the time. It got Billy out of his foster parent's abuse, and gave Frank someone to look out for when he was away from his family. He gave everyone in their unit someone to look out for. And Billy hadn't minded; he had liked it actually, being the center of everyone's attention for a while felt good to someone like Billy who had next to zero love in his life until that point. When Frank took him home to meet his family, he was an instant hit with Maria and the kids. Maria had a little brother and the kids got a brand-new uncle. Maria had seen through the ruse very quickly, and scolded Frank for a long time for bringing a child into the marines – Frank smiled at the memory of how Billy had chafed at that – and then promptly proceeded to cut him a piece of chocolate cake. Everyone had loved Billy greatly, and that was what made what he did so hard.

He poured himself another glass and waited for Curtis to come down with news. Billy had been hurt pretty bad; Dinah had shot him multiple times, and that crook doctor he went to who took his money and left him in a dumpster to bleed out had only worsened the situation. Frank didn't even know why he hadn't simply put a bullet in him when Curtis called. He had planned to do just that, but seeing Billy's face and the relief when he saw Frank, despite knowing it certainly meant his death, had struck at some deeply buried nostalgic chord in his heart. He remembered sunny days and a fresh-faced teenager and hails of bullets and ice cream and bandaging wounds and so many other unwanted memories-at-the-moment flooding his brain and he made a split decision. He spoke three words.

" _Fix him, Curtis"_

It was a testament to how well Curtis knew Frank that all he did following that statement was give a long-suffering sigh and start peeling off Billy's blood-soaked shirt. The boy in question had finally passed out from a mixture of intense pain and blood loss, and Curtis worked quickly. The shady doctor had already taken the bullets out so Curtis simply cleaned the wounds, sewed them up and bandaged it expertly. Billy needed blood, and Frank offered his arm without pause since he was a universal donor. There was no time for any medical checks so Curtis simply hooked an IV to Frank and drained him into Billy without fuss. They managed to load Billy into the back seat with Frank and Curtis drove them all to the Schultz mansion. They settled him in one of the bedrooms, and Curtis continued to patch him up while Frank attempted to explain to a panicked Amy why he brought Russo to their new home. That was a little over an hour ago, and now Amy was asleep and Frank was wondering what the hell Curtis was doing up there all this while.

He didn't have to wait long. Curtis came bounding down the stairs a few minutes later, covered in blood. "He's stable, for now. I've cleaned him up the best I could. Your blood is helping but he's going to need a lot more. More than you can give. I know you need to be here so I'll go check out some hospitals for more. You sure you know what you are doing, Frank?"

Frank nodded. "Yeah. Maria would have wanted me to try"

Curtis sighed. "Okay, if you're sure. I'm going to clean up in one of the bathrooms in this oversized house". Frank laughed. "Why do two people need all this space anyway?" he shook his head. "Rich people"

"Hey, Curt". He turned around. "Thanks"

"He was my friend too, like a baby brother to all of us, when he wasn't batshit crazy. I think he got that from your part of the family"

"You think you could pick up Madani and the detective?"

"You sure that's a good idea, Frank?"

He nodded. "They deserve to know"

* * *

There was yelling as soon as Dinah entered the house, yelling that promptly woke Amy and sent Curtis straight to the bar Frank had been romancing all night. The shouting went on for a while, with Amy chipping in intermittently with her two cents even though it always received either a _shut up_ or a _stay out of this._ It continued even as detective Mahoney came in a few minutes later. He just shook his head and joined Curtis at the bar, throwing back the brandy Curtis poured before he even sat down. They drank in companionable silence for a while, waiting for the screaming to pass.

When after five minutes it didn't seem to slow down, Mahoney threw his glass onto the floor, the shattering glass making enough noise to stop the yelling. When everyone turned to look at him, he spoke. "Tell me why I'm not arresting every single one of you in this room and that maniac upstairs?"

"Sending Billy to prison is not a good idea" Frank stated

"Why's that?"

"Cos he'll either be dead in an hour or be running things by the end of the day" Curtis said. "And you don't want Billy Russo leading anything in a maximum-security prison"

"So, the alternative is what? Keep him here and play house?" Dinah sneered

"Also, ignorance is bliss. Some of the shit we did for our country does not need to be known, and you don't need Billy singing it"

"I can handle him" Frank said calmly

"You?" Mahoney said in disbelief

"Yes. I've known Billy since he was a teenager. I know stuff about him that no one does. I know how to handle him when he steps out of line. I've had my revenge, Madani, and you've had yours. Detective Mahoney, you want justice but you wouldn't find that by putting Billy away. It would just rack up more bodies. My way satisfies everyone. No more bodies, and he will get what is coming to him. He…" a sound interrupted his speech. "…What is that?"

"Oh yeah. Baby monitor. Found it in one of the cupboards. Anyhow, it means Billy's waking up" Curtis explained

* * *

Billy Russo blinked blearily at his surrounding and wondered why he was still alive. He looked at the fuzzy shapes before him. He was so doped up on drugs, he couldn't really make out anyone. The shapes were becoming clearer though, as he became more awake, and he recognized them after about a minute of unfocused staring.

"How am I still alive?" he slurred

"I'm wondering the same thing" was Dinah's scathing reply

He smirked at her. "You couldn't kill me Madani. It must upset you to know you failed" he said, voice getting clearer with each word and dripping with venom. "What do you want anyway? Fix me up so you can imprison me? I am **not** going to be locked up, and I **will** hurt anyone who tries"

"Wow, I can see the rehabilitation already" Amy said sarcastically

"Settle down, Billy" Frank ordered

Billy sneered. "You were there, Franky. Why didn't you just finish the job? I would have at least done you that courtesy"

"I said settle down Billy"

"Or. What?"

Frank started removing his belt, and Mahoney and Madani immediately started to say something, before they saw Billy's pale face and wide eyes at the sight of the belt. Frank pulled off the belt, doubled it over and slammed it hard onto the bedside table beside Billy's head, causing him to flinch severely. Everyone, except Curtis, watched as suave, charming, badass Billy Russo shrunk back into the pillows in fear as Frank put his hands on both sides of his head against the headboard and leaned into his face. "You wanna repeat that?" he asked chillingly

Billy shook his head rapidly, two tears escaping from his tightly closed eyelids. "No sir"

Madani gaped shamelessly, and she heard a faint _wait, what_ from Amy as Frank peeled his hands off the headboard. "You called Curtis when you were hurt. That's good. I won't punish you for that" Billy looked relieved. "Now, you will apologize to Madani for using her and shooting her in the head, and detective Mahoney for being a complete menace in his city"

"That last part includes you, Frank, but don't let me interrupt" Mahoney said

"I'm sorry" Billy said simply

"Billy" Frank called in warning

"I'm sorry for using you and shooting you in the head" Billy said quickly to Madani. "And I'm sorry for being a menace in your city" he added to Mahoney

"I'm sure I can find some way for you to help fix it" Mahoney replied

"Now, thank Curtis for fixing you up" Frank continued

"Thanks for fixing me up Curtis" Billy said softly

"Anytime bro"

"Good. You do not get out of that bed for anything other than going to the bathroom, you get that?" Billy nodded. "I find out you as much as stepped a foot on that carpet and you'll regret it, copy?"

"Yes sir"

Frank looked around for a while before picking up the belt and putting it back around his waist. "Get some sleep" he said in a gruff voice before literally stomping out of the room. Everyone followed almost immediately, with the exception of Curtis who went to check Billy's tubes and lines. Besides, he already knew the story Frank was going to tell downstairs.

* * *

"Okay, what was that upstairs?" Amy asked

"I told you I could handle him" Frank replied

"I can see that" Mahoney said. "What was with the belt anyway? Scared him half out of his mind"

"Billy's foster father abused him a lot. Whipped him with a belt so often the mere mention of it cowed him into obedience. It was one of the reasons he ran away. I looked out for him for a while but I had to go back when my leave was over. He had just turned sixteen but he was tall enough to pass for eighteen. I got him the necessary papers and he enlisted too…"

"You forged his documents" Madani stated plainly

"…he was just a kid…" Frank continued like the interruption hadn't happened. "…and was prone to acts of foolishness. An official reprimand would go on his file, and he was too young for most of the marine punishments so we came up with something else"

"You spanked him instead. With a belt" Mahoney pieced together

"Yes and no. We didn't use the belt. We found that out purely by accident. He had done something very foolish again - he got hurt and didn't tell anyone about it - and I was so pissed off I pushed him onto a bed and told him to stay put. Then I started to change out of my clothes. But as soon as the belt came off, Billy turned white, and started begging. He cried a lot and promised he'd be good. I didn't know what had just happened but I told him he was safe and that I wouldn't let anybody hurt him. It took a while but he calmed down and went to sleep right after. The days after that he was a model soldier. I didn't make the connection until about two moths later, when it happened again, this time with Curtis and Raymond. After that, when he did something really stupid, a mere mention of it would put him right back in line. Its not ideal to use fear, but it worked, so" Frank shrugged

"That was why he called Curtis when he was bleeding out? Even though he knew it will likely result in his death?" Madani asked

"Well, to be honest he was already bleeding out from the three bullets you dumped in him so maybe the blood loss was making him crazy" Amy said

"Yes" Frank answered. "Because of the chain of command. The marines were Billy's family and he knew his place in that family. We had drummed some rules and principles into him, and even though he became a maniac, there were some things he just couldn't ignore. We drilled it into him too well"

"Like calling someone when he was hurt" Mahoney said

Frank nodded. "Also, he didn't want to be alone when he died. Despite the terrible things he had done, he wanted at least one of us there when he died"

"How old is he now?" Madani inquired. "I know what his file says, but considering this new information, I'd like to know"

"He's coming up on 28"

"His file says 33"

Frank simply shrugged, nonplussed. "Billy Russo"

"But your wife and kids. That was four years ago, right?" Amy asked

"Right"

"So, then that means…"

"It means what it means kid" Frank said sharply

"But still, why would that affect him now? He's all grown up" Mahoney said, then took a look at Frank's impassive face. "You would spank him even, now wouldn't you? And he knows it. Unbelievable"

"Actions have consequences, detective. Billy knows that" Frank said grumpily before disappearing upstairs

"Frank Castle is going to spank Billy Russo for being a nuisance" Amy intoned. "You know how that should feel weird?" she asked Madani and Maloney. "It just feels strangely normal"

"Yeah, crazy is the new normal around Frank Castle, kid. Get used to it" Maloney said, grabbing his coat and making to leave. "I hope I never see any of you again"

* * *

 _I took some liberties with the timelines and ages. They may not add up, but it doesn't have to. Just enjoy the story._


End file.
